He said in a letter to Leanne: “The Campaigner of the Year Award has often gone to a politician promoting a single issue or advocating new legislation, but this year our panel of judges wanted to recognise your remarkable achievement in the Plaid Cymru leadership election.

“To the lay observer, you began as the outsider and through effective, innovative campaigning emerged a clear winner.”

And paying tribute to Mr Andrews, he said: “The feeling was that he is one of the most dynamic members of the Cabinet. He has been determined to stamp his mark on the job.

“There has been a lot of tension with Westminster over GCSE exams, and whether you agree with him or not Leighton Andrews has stood up for what he sees as the interests of Welsh students.”

The title MP of the Year went to Shadow Welsh Secretary and Pontypridd MP Owen Smith.

The Welsh Politician of the Year Awards will be aired on ITV Wales at 10.35pm on Thursday, December 6.

WalesOnline is part of Media Wales, publisher of the Western Mail, South Wales Echo, Wales on Sunday and the seven Celtic weekly titles, offering you unique access to our audience across Wales online and in print.